JEWS, CHRISTIANS, AND HUNTINGWhen it comes to the matter of hunting, there is a wide divergence between Jewish
and Christian tradition.

Aside from the identity of the promised Messiah, Christian interpretations of the
Hebrew Scriptures rely heavily on Jewish sources. The biblical heroes of Judaism are the
heroes of Christendom; the enemies of the Chosen People are seen as the enemies of God by
Christians as well as Jews. And the historical background, as well as the significance of
specific scriptures expounded by Jewish scholars, is accepted by their Christian
counterparts. But there is a glaring exception to this reliance on Jewish sources and
commentaries. When it comes to the matter of hunting, there is a wide divergence between
Jewish and Christian tradition.

The traditional Jewish abhorrence of hunting begins with commentaries on the man
called Nimrod. He is the first man the bible describes as a hunter (Genesis 10:9). The
Rabbis castigated him for this activity, and linked it to the general degeneracy of his
character. The Jerusalem Targum says Nimrod "was mighty in hunting and in sin
before God." The Syriac calls him "a warlike giant" And The Targum
of Jonathan ben Uzziel says: "From the foundation of the world none was ever found
like Nimrod; powerful in hunting and in rebellions against the Lord." Along with
hunting, Nimrod's "rebellions against the Lord" included his founding of the
city of Babel, in which the infamous tower was built. Men believed they had become so
technologically proficient that they could construct a building that would "reach
unto heaven." The egotism and arrogance of that undertaking mirrors the arrogance
that led men to kill God's creatures as a diversion or as a demonstration of their
prowess.

But it is not only the hunter-as-sportsman who is the target of rabbinic contempt.
Commentators who castigate Nimrod have little use for that other biblical hunter, Esau,
who ate the animals that he killed.

Esau was the twin who sold his birthright to his brother Jacob, for a bowl of
porridge. The bible describes him as a man who spent his time roaming the land, looking
for animals to kill (Genesis 25:27) But Jacob his brother, who became the Patriarch of the
twelve tribes of Israel, is described as living the life of a farmer, tending the crops
that fed his extended family.

Esau, like Nimrod, is considered a contemptible character. The Encyclopedia
Judaica reports that "The two famous hunters in the Bible, Nimrod and Esau, were
regarded in a derogatory light, as rebels against God and the very antithesis of the
spirit of Judaism." The Encyclopedia also reports that "the rabbinical attitude
toward hunting is entirely negative. Harsh things are said about those who hunt even for a
living."

This condemnation of hunting and hunters continued to mark Judaism. It gained
strength throughout Medieval times and by A.D. 1700, Shemesh Zedakah (no. 57) forbade
hunting with weapons both as a profession and for sport. With regard to the latter, S.
Morpurgo emphatically states that those who hunt "have taken hold of the occupation
of Esau the wicked, and are guilty of cruelty in putting to death god's creatures for no
reason."

But this ongoing, pervasive, condemnation of hunting within Jewish tradition had
no parallel among Christians. In fact, Christianity had increasingly supported the cruelty
which vented itself in hunting. In Medieval times it was the wealthy nobles who had the
time and the means to indulge their blood lust by killing animals as a recreational
pursuit. And because the churches and their clerics coveted the economic and military
support of this privileged class, they blessed this slaughter of the innocent.

When men formed hunting "parties" to go out into the woods to kill God's
creatures, it was the clerics who validated what they were doing by asking God's blessing
on this murderous activity. They also officiated at pre-hunt services in the private
chapels of the wealthy, asking God for the grace to kill large numbers of His creatures.
And this medieval, Christian attitude still prevails.

The Christian voices that were raised in protest against the wanton murder of
animal beings were ignored. Even the repugnance toward hunting and hunters that was
encoded in Catholic Canon Law, was ignored. "Esau was a hunter because he was a
sinner; and in the Holy Scriptures we do not find a single holy man being a hunter."
(From the Corpus Juris Canonici. Rome, 1582.)

In the same century, Saint/Sir Thomas More had written about the kind of community
in which economic, political and social rules would reflect mankind's decision to live
within the framework of God's plan for the earth. The people of this Godly community would
learn that they were "not masters, but stewards of God's creation" and hunting
would be forbidden. The inhabitants of this community "would not believe that the
divine clemency delights in bloodshed and slaughter, seeing that it has imparted life to
animate creatures that they might enjoy life."

But in spite of the many Christian spokesmen who have condemned the abuse and
murder of animals since the first century A.D., recreational killing remains an
acceptable--and honored--activity for Christians. This is a far cry from the Jewish
attitude toward hunting which was articulated by Maimonides and remains a viable, Jewish
ethos: "a person who indulges in this sport is unworthy of the name of Jew."

This article is available in pamphlet form which may be reprinted and distributed
for educational purposes.

Your Comments are Welcome

God's Creatures Ministry is committed to spreading God's
compassion to all He has made based on The Scriptures. Although we are a
Christian Ministry, we encourage all to have their own animal welfare committee
in their community. We extend our resources to those who would like to learn
more or begin their own God's Creatures Ministry as an extension of us. God
created us to have a vegetarian diet and commissioned us to protect His animals.
Instead, we have exploited them for our entertainment, fashion, appetite and
useless, torturous research. These creatures have the right to live as they were
created to live. Because we live IN this world, but are not OF this world, we
strive to bring God's mercy and justice to all. We live in God's Kingdom now
where Jesus, The Sacrificial Lamb, The Prince of Peace, The Lion of Judah
reigns. We look forward to that day when all of creation will be 'set free from
slavery to corruption and share in the glorious freedom of the children of God'
(Romans 8:21) where a little child will lead and guide God's creatures (see
Isaiah 11:5-9).